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VAC Barbel Day - Felmersham - September 19th - All Members welcome

VAC Open Day - Our Best Ever

We have been blessed with great fortune over the last three years with regard to
the weather on our Open Days at Riverside. This year, as we celebrate our 75th
anniversary, it was odds-on for heavy
showers for most of the day yet, in the end, we barely got a sprinkle. As a
result, July 11th saw a steady procession of members with their families,
prospective members and curious local residents make their way to Riverside
which, of course, looked fabulous.

The layout and activities were
similar to previous years; Carp Corner providing advice on specimen fishing (and
they landed 20+ carp), the trout section providing 1 to 1 lessons on fly casting
plus demonstrating the delights of smoked trout and the match lads providing
every youngster with a simple whip rig to catch, for some, their first ever
fish. Indeed, some managed not only roach, rudd and perch but also small carp
and even bream to 3lb.

Elsewhere, a brief junior match was
held as the conclusion to several weeks of coaching (see article below) with
each young competitor receiving a prize and a certificate, plus there were a
number of various displays by club members and local related interest groups
plus, of course, the BBQ and all being well attended. Many visitors were so
impressed that about 10 adult memberships were sold on the day and many more
have followed since. It's fair to say that both new and existing members were
particularly interested in this years new venue - the Great Ouse at Milton
Ernest. Details on this exciting new fishery, which has already produced barbel
to 14.14 this season, will soon be added to the Fisheries Pages.

Video Memories

As usual, the VAC had numerous
heroes in action on the day and in the preparation beforehand. Well done guys
(and girls) - see if you can spot yourself in this short video - click the pic
(right) to load and play. It's 55mb and just under five minutes long.

Rod & Line match - Riverside 6th September

Poles are banned
on this special annual match at Riverside which often attracts those who
perhaps would not normally match fish.

All are welcome with pools
at just £5 and a breakfast available beforehand - see the VAC Match
Pages for details of how to book in.

What Va£ue
do you put on the Future of Angling?

Angling Trust
is the new,
single
organisation to
represent all
game, coarse and
sea anglers and
angling in
England. The
formation this
year of Angling
Trust (merging
the ACA, NFA and
others) brings
with it a
positive new
future for
angling.

However, despite widespread
publicity and the distribution of half a million membership leaflets,
the level of recruitment has to date, fallen below expectations. This
shortfall, along with higher than expected costs, is threatening the
viability of the Trust.

* * *

Adult membership is just
£20 per year. Click the logo to learn more about the work of the Angling
Trust and why your £20 is important to preserve angling for future
generations.

Membership
shortfall : Of 4 million anglers less than 1% have joined the Trust
– many more were expected to have signed up and, despite thousands of
further members of former organisations due to renew in the remaining
months of the year, the Board is not confident the organisation can
continue to provide sufficient service to members without making
savings.

Fishing on the Curriculum

Member and parent Rod Purcell
offered to show a few of his daughter's school chums what fun
fishing can be and it became a great four week experience.

One or two members
might have not received the latest VAC newsletter due to the
transition to our new
Club Database. Therefore, on this occasion, it's also available for
download by clicking the image on the left.

Please also be reminded
that if you do not add your email address to your profile on the Club
Database you will soon cease to receive e-News.

Please do not confuse the
fact that your email may be registered on the
VAC Forum -
these are totally independent systems.